Interested in Fixed gear but...?

Question

I'm a bit confused on gear inches, how do I work this out?

On my Speciallized Allez, I have a 50T front chainring, and I think my 14T rear sprocket works quite well for me. What does this equate to in gear inches?

Also, I have excellent acceleration and sprinting speed, but have a slightly lower cadence on the flats than recommended. So would it suit me to use a larger chainring, such as 52/53T rather than a conventional 48T for my fixed gear project?

Thanks for any help.

Answer 1

The short answer is this link -

http://software.bareknucklebrigade.com/r...

That calculates everything for you, including speed per cadence.

But what is the reason for this?

When I was young my team forced me to ride a 42-18 fixed gear in the winter to improve the efficiency of my pedal turn and increase my average cadence during the season.

If you ride track then you have to use a fixed gear, and then it depends on the event. 1km, Sprint, Pursuit. I used to ride the points race.  52*15 (no acceleration)

Gear inches is wheel size * front chainring teath / back teath.

or 27 inches * 50 / 14 = 96.4 inches.

Answer 2

If you're working on cadence and spin as you are suggesting, don't go for such a monster gear ratio.  Most racers for training use an extremely low-geared bike to force a super high cadence, which in turn reinforces proper spinning technique.  42/17 42/19 are reasonable for the sole purpose of training cadence.  A 50 or 48T chainring on the front is monster!  If you are racing on a velodrome you'd want that setup so you can keep riding uber fast, but for training you would probably want something smaller.

I've included a link to sheldon brown's gear inch calculator, as well as a site that sells custom chainrings.

In the meantime, find a gear ratio on your current bike (which you have) that you can ride in all the time without shifting or coasting, and you can use that for your gear ratio.  You can check bikepedia to look up the specs of your current bike and find out what your actual tooth specs are.

Consider buying a wheelset with a flip-flop hub so that you can change up your gear ratio on a whim.

Oh yeah.  And for the love of god.  Put on a front brake.  Especially if you end up with an aggressive gear ratio.  You simply can't stop as fast as front brake with your legs.

Answer 3

why are you going for that. standard  10 speed sprocket is the best. changing sprockets with increased teeth in the free wheel decrease your maximum speed.

I'm a cyclist too so 10 speed is the best don't compromise it

Ok Tom